Saturday, May 30, 2009

I think the quality of this video is exceptional. It brings an appreciation for the earth, as well as a reminder that we all share the earth. It brings with it a sense of connectedness--that none of us are separate. What happens to a person affects us all; what happens to the earth, or any of its inhabitants, affects us all. In knowing this, we can address our thoughts and the result of our thoughts (or lack, thereof). Thoughts manifest themselves in one way or another, so in being consciously aware of what we think, we can assert some control over our own thoughts. In exercising control, we can master our own lives.

In mastering our own lives, we can be grateful with the benefits we reap. In being grateful, we can attract more gratitude, as well as pass it on to others. There are no limits to what we can do as individuals, and/or collectively. The world is changing and it is because of so many who are ready for a shift in consciousness. The world is ready and the world needs us; the earth needs us. Only we can make a difference. It's a beautiful world, it's a beautiful life, though parts of the world still suffers. Perhaps through each part of this intricate web of humanity, it is possible to create countless and boundless ripple effects which may transmit to those parts of the world, the earth, which are suffering as I type this.

Watch the video - it alone is worth the couple of minutes. To be able to appreciate the beauty and splendor, please consider visiting The Secret website - you can view the video on a full screen and it's free. Thanks for reading. :)

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Tennessee Williams, born Thomas Lanier Williams III, was one of the more prominent playwrights of the 20th Century. He was born March 26, 1911 in Columbus, Mississippi, and spent 53 years of his life actively contributing to the literary world. He lived all over the South in his youth, including Knoxville, Tennessee, which is when he changed his name. In 1939 Williams moved to New Orleans which would be the setting for one of his most well-known works, Pulitzer Prize-winning A Streetcar Named Desire. Williams’ family influenced his writing, as well as his changing social status and environment when he was a child, and this influence reflected through the characters of Stanley, Blanche, and Stella (Boxill 2).

Williams’ father, Cornelius Williams, was a traveling salesman who was also a violent alcoholic. In A Streetcar Named Desire Stanley Kowalski personifies Cornelius Williams through his drunken and brutish behavior. Elia Kazan, directed the award-winning 1947 screenplay, in which Marlon Brando portrayed Stanley: “There’s something subhuman about him. Thousands of years have passed him right by and there he is. Stanley Kowalski, survivor of the stone age, bearing raw meat home from the kill in the jungle” (Williams 72). In his introduction, Williams describes how writing A Streetcar Named Desire healed him:

It is only in his work that an artist can find reality and satisfaction, for the actual world is less intense than the world of his invention and consequently his life, without recourse to violent disorder, does not seem very substantial. The right condition for him is that in which his work is not only convenient but unavoidable (3).

In addition to Cornelius Williams’ influence for Stanley’s character, Williams’ best friend and coworker’s name was Stanley Kowalski. The friend of Williams was also attractive to women.

Williams’ mother, Edwina, was reportedly “repressed and genteel, very much the southern belle in her youth” (Baym 2334). Alcoholic rage was prevalent in Williams’ youth, and as a drunken Stanley would beat Stella, Cornelius would beat Edwina. As a result, Williams suffered and would turn to his older, emotionally fragile sister, Rose. Edwina inspired both female characters of Blanche and Stella--Stella, the nurturing co-dependent, enabling wife, and Blanche, who bounced back and forth between fantasy and reality. Rose was diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age and ultimately institutionalized. Shortly after being committed, her parents authorized a prefrontal lobotomy. Tennessee never forgave his parents (2334), nor did he forgive himself. He suffered from paranoia, guilt, and depression (Eisen).

Williams endured a painful childhood with the emotional loss of support from his sister and damaging atmosphere of living with an alcoholic. In addition to the dysfunction in his family, “the decline of the Williams family from prominence among the early settlers of Tennessee mirrors the fate of the South. The playwright’s own upbringing seemed to him a still greater fall” (Boxill 2). Writing saved Tennessee from plunging into madness and always seemed to reflect “[the] sadness of life inherent in the course of eroding time…” (3). Blanche’s character represented Tennessee’s fall from the nostalgic Old South, such as when the reader learns that there is no longer a Belle Reve. His own grandfather “squandered the family fortune in unsuccessful campaigns for governor, and the old Williams residence in Knoxville was turned into an orphanage” (7).

According to critic Harold Bloom, A Streetcar Named Desire “is the secret dynamic of what is surely Williams's masterwork… It is, inevitably, more remarkable on the stage than in the study, but the fusion of Williams's lyrical and dramatic talents in it has prevailed over time, at least so far” (Bloom). He further illustrates “that Blanche's only strengths are ‘nostalgia and hope,’ that she is the desperate exceptional woman,’ and that her fall is a parable, rather than an isolated squalor” (Bloom). Blanche demonstrates her remarkable strengths in her confrontation to Stella about Stanley:

Maybe he'll strike you or maybe grunt and kiss you! That is, if kisses have been discovered yet! Night falls and the other apes gather! There in the front of the cave, all grunting like him, and swilling and gnawing and hulking! His poker night!--you call it--this party of apes! Somebody growls--some creature snatches at something--the fight is on! God! Maybe we are a long way from being made in God's image, but Stella--my sister--there has been some progress since then! Such things as art--as poetry and music--such kinds of new light have come into the world since then! In some kinds of people some tenderer feelings have had some little beginning! That we have got to make grow! And cling to, and hold as our flag! In this dark march toward whatever it is we're approaching. . . . Don't--don't hang back with the brutes! (Williams).

Williams died February 24, 1983, at the age of 71. Despite his dysfunctional upbringing, he was able to express, with poetic style, the realism which many Americans would find. Williams’ timeless artistry speaks to everyone when he speaks of “compassion and moral conviction, that first made the experience of living something that must be translated into pigment or music or bodily movement or poetry or prose or anything that’s dynamic and expressive—that’s what’s good for you if you’re at all serious in your aims” (Williams 4).

Saturday, March 14, 2009

"Shakespeare in Love" review******************************YouTube is selective about which videos are reproduced, so this video selection was not my first choice! ***************************************In John Madden’s film Shakespeare in Love, the idea of Gwenyth Paltrow convincingly dressing like a man may unbelievable. However, as the story to unfolds, many seemingly implausible components of the film coalesce, creating a plausible vision of Shakespeare’s life. In conjunction with playwright Tom Stoppard, Maddon creates a successful love story between William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) and Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow). The interplay of fact, fantasy, humor, and allusion create a portrait of Shakespeare and his environs.In Shakespeare in Love, Madden blends fact and fantasy with the characters in the film. Such characters as Christopher Marlowe, Philip Henslowe, Will Kempe, John Hemings, Augustine Philips, and Richard Burbage were all characters in William Shakespeare’s life.

In the movie, the roles they played in Shakespeare’s life are altered to further the plot. One example is Philip Henslowe, who was in debt to loan shark Hugh Fennyman. In exchange for a partnership in the comedy "Romeo and Ethel, The Pirate’s Daughter", Henslowe is able to absolve himself of his debt because he is sure the comedy will be a hit. Henslowe was unaware that the play would be renamed Romeo and Juliet, and would end in a tragedy. The ensemble of characters in the story worked together to create something extraordinary.

Shakespeare maintains undertones of comedy in Romeo and Juliet, such as the character of the Nurse. Stoppard and Maddon retain the same undertones, and inject present-day humor in Shakespeare in Love. The presence of a coffee mug marked “A present from Stratford-on-Avon” gives the viewer the first clue to many other humorous subtleties to come. Madden brings smiles to viewers when Shakespeare jumps into the ferry and says “Follow that boat!”; and the often said phrase, “It’s a mystery,” keeps the unique lighthearted feeling alive as the audience compares the parallel plots of Shakespeare in Love and Romeo and Juliet.

The parallel plots uniquely endear William Shakespeare to the viewers. Initially, as the film establishes its own plot, Madden uses fact, fantasy and humor to captivate the audience. As Gwyneth Paltrow’s character disguises herself as Thomas Kent, romantic comedy emerges. The clever allusion to Romeo and Juliet within the plot of the actual film delights the fans. For example, Will and Viola are making love and reciting the lines from Romeo and Juliet, lines which Will includes in his current play. The film volleys back and forth between Will and Viola to characters, Romeo and Juliet.

John Madden’s Shakespeare in Love not only demonstrates how the interplay of fact, fantasy, humor, and allusion create a portrait of Shakespeare and his environs, but enthralls the audience. The successful love story of Romeo and Juliet haunts the minds of most Shakespeare fans, and finds ways into the hearts of viewers everywhere, through Shakespeare in Love.

DUBLIN, Ireland – A security alert has been issued today in the Northern Ireland town of Ballykinler, the site of a British Army base.

The Ballykinler base in County Down is one of several feared targets of dissident republicans intent on reigniting Northern Ireland’s “Troubles” – a three-decade long conflict between Irish republicans and Britain. Despite widespread condemnation of the dissident activity, many fear the attacks are being stepped-up in order to destabilize Northern Irish society.

A joint operation now underway by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Garda Síochána, the Republic of Ireland’s police, seeks to uncover a bomb believed to have been smuggled into Northern Ireland by a dissident republican group calling itself the Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA), which claimed responsibility for killing two British soldiers Saturday.The bomb alert follows a report in London’s Guardian newspaper that stated security forces are scouring the country after receiving intelligence reports that the RIRA has smuggled a large bomb into Northern Ireland from the Republic of Ireland.

Guardian correspondent Henry MacDonald says the alert has been at “red light level” since Monday. “The evidence is on the streets and roads – there are checkpoints in South Down and South Armagh.”

Security has been tightened on the largely open and unpatrolled 224-mile border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, according to media reports.

A PSNI spokesperson said that they do not discuss operational matters. The Garda Síochána also declined to comment.

The bomb scare comes as heads of Ireland’s two police forces are set to meet in Belfast today to discuss the recent violence by dissidents. Police chiefs Hugh Orde and Fachtna Murphy will assess the security threat posed by the emboldened groups still opposed to the 1998 Good Friday Peace Accord.

Northern Ireland remains tense after a recent spate of shootings in which three people – two soldiers and a police officer – were killed. The soldiers were shot by the RIRA in Antrim on on March 7, the Monitor reported here. Two days later, we reported on the killing of a police officer by another breakaway group called the Continuity IRA. The two attacks are being treated as unrelated by the authorities. Mr. Orde said reports of a connection were “speculation.”Four people were also injured in the Antrim attack, including two pizza delivery men. Two men were arrested in connection with the shooting of Constable Carroll in Craigavon on Tuesday.The surge in violence follows more than a decade of relative calm on the streets of Northern Ireland.

Police have denied there are plans to release security camera footage of the attacks on Massarene barracks in Antrim.

An interview with the family of murdered PSNI officer, Constable Stephen Paul Carroll, was carried out by local television on Wednesday evening and will be released to the media Thursday night. Constable Carroll will be buried tomorrow in his hometown of Banbridge in County Down.The sudden outbreak of violence has been met with widespread revulsion across Northern Ireland’s divided Roman Catholic and Protestant communities. Political leaders from all sides have condemned the attacks, including Sinn Féin, the party linked to the now disarmed Provisional IRA, the main republican player in Northern Ireland’s 30-year “Troubles.”

As the Monitor reported Thursday, more than 10,000 people gathered in Belfast Wednesday to hold a rally demanding an end to dissident violence.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

ANTRIM, Northern Ireland – It may not be over yet as leaders of Northern Ireland's Catholic-Protestant government pledged to keep the peace Sunday, after Irish Republican Army dissidents fatally shot two off-duty British soldiers meeting pizza delivery men at a barracks entrance.

Police said the gunmen opened fire from a car outside the base, then shot at least some victims at close range as they lay on the ground. The bloodshed is all too familiar when we learned of four UK soldiers being hit with two fatalities. Also shot were the two delivery men, a local teenager who was seriously wounded, and a 32-year-old Polish immigrant who remained in critical condition Sunday night.

The Sunday Tribune newspaper said it received a claim of responsibility in a phone call from a man claiming to represent the Real IRA splinter group. The paper said the caller, who used a code word to verify he was a spokesman for the outlawed gang, defended the shooting and described the Domino's Pizza workers as "collaborators of British rule in Ireland."

The Real IRA was responsible for the deadliest terror attack in Northern Ireland history: a 1998 car-bombing of the town of Omagh that killed 29 people, mostly women and children.The senior Catholic in the power-sharing coalition, Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, said dissidents were trying to rekindle sectarian bloodshed and force Britain to resume sterner security policies.

The IRA killed nearly 1,800 people from 1970 to 1997 in a failed effort to force Northern Ireland out of the United Kingdom and into the Republic of Ireland. The IRA disarmed and renounced violence in 2005, but splinter groups using a wide range of labels have tried to continue the campaign.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

The world won't stop spinningeven though it stands stillin moments I have to sharewith you

Working through the daysof embittered pasts, I am hereas my time stands stillfor you

I am soft in many waysyou can lay your head downI will stroke it, quietly,for you

You may want to know I can beyour soft place to fall in the dayswhen everything seems to beagainst you

Cradling your heart in my palmI will be your soft place to fallwherever you may go I am herefor you

Through smiles, making lovethrough strife and discordI can be the soft place to fallfor you

*******the night is so quietexcept for the whispering windtickling the windchimestantalizing my moodlooking up to the celestial gardenknowing that the stars which shinealso shine for youattempting to catch one that fallsacross the sky into my handlighting my lifewith a momentary glimpseof what is to comemaking me smile through the darkso that I may be a lightsoftening blows in a mortal worldand I could be your soft placewanting to feel you thereas you land in my armsyour soft placefor a time such as thisknowing whatever may comeit will be all rightas I pillow your fall into the nightthat you may remove your maskif only for a little whileand maybe I can be your soft placeyour soft place to fallwhen all else seems to failas I am so very softin many ways

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Jennifer Hudson sang an unforgettable performance tonight at the February 8, 2009, 51st Annual Grammy Awards. Her presence at this event was bittersweet, as was her gift of the National Anthem at the 2009 Superbowl. She delivered a spectacular rendition of the Star Spangled Banner through her sadness of dealing with the loss of her family.

A tearful Jennifer Hudson won her first Grammy, thanking her family "in heaven and those who are with me today" to kick off an evening already stoked with drama when police said they were investigating double nominee Chris Brown for an alleged assault on an unidentified woman.

Brown and long-time girlfriend Rihanna, each nominated and slated to perform, separately dropped out of the Grammys at the last minute and their whereabouts were not immediately known Sunday night. The victim of Brown's alleged assault wasn't identified, and it wasn't immediately clear whether Rihanna's absence was related to Brown's.

Hudson, 27, made no direct reference to the killings of her mother, brother and nephew that kept her in seclusion until just this month. But while fighting back tears, she made it clear that her family was foremost on her mind.

"I first would like to thank God who has brought me through," said Hudson, also an Oscar winner, as she accepted her award Whitney Houston. "I would like to thank my family in heaven and those who are with me today."

Hudson later performed "You Pulled Me Through," a typically strong vocal performance that ended in tears. While Hudson's emotion was front and center, her performance was moving and unforgettable.

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About Me

Reading what I write will tell you more about me than anything I could say here.
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I have two daughters who mean the world to me. I am creative and I love life.
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If I can touch one heart, spark one creative thought, or make someone laugh, then that is one of my purposes here on this tiny little planet.
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Welcome to my world.
:)
~Dana